Andrew Gould Chatfield (January 27, 1810 – October 3, 1875) was an American lawyer and politician from New York and

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

Life

He was the son of Enos Chatfield (1782–1858) and Hannah (Starr) Chatfield (1782–1857). He was born in that part of the Town of Butternuts which in 1849 was separated as the Town of Morris, in

Otsego County, New York Otsego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,524. The county seat is Cooperstown. The name ''Otsego'' is from a Mohawk or Oneida word meaning "place of the rock." History In 178 ...

. In 1831, he began to study law at Painted Post, was admitted to the bar in 1833, and commenced practice in

Addison Addison may refer to: Places Canada * Addison, Ontario United States *Addison, Alabama *Addison, Illinois *Addison Street in Chicago, Illinois which runs by Wrigley Field * Addison, Kentucky *Addison, Maine *Addison, Michigan *Addison, New York ...

Steuben County, New York Steuben County (stu-BEN) is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 93,584. Its county seat is Bath. Its name is in honor of Baron von Steuben, a Prussian general who fought on the American ...

. On June 27, 1836, he married Eunice Electa Clark Beeman (1817–1901), and their daughter was Cecelia Annette "Celia" (Chatfield) Irwin (1837–1915). He was a member of the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

(Steuben Co.) in

1839 Events January–March * January 2 – The first photograph of the Moon is taken, by French photographer Louis Daguerre. * January 6 – Night of the Big Wind: Ireland is struck by the most damaging cyclone in 300 years. * January 9 – T ...

1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janua ...

1841 Events January–March * January 20 – Charles Elliot of the United Kingdom, and Qishan of the Qing dynasty, agree to the Convention of Chuenpi. * January 26 – Britain occupies Hong Kong. Later in the year, the first census of the i ...

and

1846 Events January–March * January 5 – The United States House of Representatives votes to stop sharing the Oregon Country with the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom. * January 13 – The Milan–Venice railway' ...

. On March 7, 1846, he was elected Speaker pro tempore, to preside over the Assembly during the absence of Speaker

William C. Crain William Cullen Crain (August 31, 1798, in Warren, Herkimer County, New York – March 16, 1865) was an American physician and politician. Life His father was Rufus Crain, a physician, a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for sixteen years, an ...

. In 1848, he removed to Southport (now

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the seat of Kenosha County. Per the 2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan, Kenos ...

), and practiced law there. In 1850, he was elected Judge of

Racine County, Wisconsin Racine County (, sometimes also ) is a county in southeastern Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, its population was 197,727, making it Wisconsin's fifth-most populous county. Its county seat is Racine. The county was founded in 1836, then a part ...

, but resigned after a short time in office. In 1853, he was appointed by President

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

as a justice of the Supreme Court of Minnesota Territory, and remained in office until 1857. In 1854, he founded the Town of Belle Plaine, in

Scott County, Minnesota Scott County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 150,928. Its county seat is Shakopee. Shakopee is also the largest city in Scott County, the twenty-third-largest city in Minnesota, and the sixt ...

, and settled there. In February 1863, Chatfield was appointed one of four Commissioners to Revise the Statutes of the State of Minnesota. In November 1870, he was elected Judge of the Eighth Judicial Circuit. He died at Belle Plaine, and was buried there at the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration Cemetery. New York Attorney General Levi S. Chatfield was his brother.

Chatfield, Minnesota Chatfield is a city in Fillmore and Olmsted counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 2,779 at the 2010 census. The city's area is split almost equally between the two counties. Chatfield is known as "The Gateway to Bluff Cou ...

was named after Andrew G. Chatfield.

References

Sources

''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 222, 224f, 232 and 265; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
''General and Special Laws of the State of Minnesota''
(1863; pg. 68f; "An Act to provide for the Revision of the Statutes of the State of Minnesota")
Bio
at Minnesota Legal History Project

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chatfield, Andrew G 1810 births 1875 deaths People from Addison, New York People from Morris, New York Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Minnesota Territory judges 19th-century American judges Wisconsin state court judges Politicians from Kenosha, Wisconsin People from Belle Plaine, Minnesota American city founders 19th-century American politicians